Tokyo Has Enough Weird Shops As It Is
by Mokona-Midoki
Summary: COMPLETE! In which Watanuki and Yuko meet a mysterious Chinese petshop owner. COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

Tokyo Has Enough Weird Shops As It Is

Tokyo Has Enough Weird Shops As It Is…

By: Mokona Midoki

Chapter One

In which Watanuki meets ANOTHER mysterious shop owner, and is almost eaten by a mystical demon

The small bell over the door tinkled lightly as the young man entered. He looked around the shop and blanched. _Did Yuko suddenly move shops or something? I KNOW this can't be right!_

At that moment a voice floated out of what seemed like no where. "Hello. Welcome to my shop."

Kimihiro Watanuki looked up sharply as someone stepped out of the shadows. It looked to be a young woman with short chin-length black hair, maybe their mid-twenties wearing an elegant Chinese style robe, but he wasn't sure. After all, the voice hadn't exactly sounded like a woman's but then again…

"Can I help you?" He, Watanuki had decided it was a man, asked. (After all, the sign above the shop had read Count D's Pet Store, and as far as he knew only men were called Counts, right?)

"Uh, well, my friend saw this store and was wondering about it." He replied. "Her birthday's coming up and I thought there might be something that would interest her here."

The man smiled. Watanuki tensed. There was something in the man's smile that reminded him of a certain employer of his. He had come to be wary of smiles like that. "Well of course we have a wealth of animals here to please anybody. I am Count D, the owner of this shop. Would you like to sit down and have some tea, and perhaps you could tell me what kind of person your friend is?" He motioned to a small, delicate looking table.

"Well, I, um, okay." He sat down, on the edge of the seat, ready to spring up at a moment's notice. As the Count moved over to a small corner where a tea pot sat, Watanuki waited. He felt extremely uneasy, and it wasn't just because of the strange proprietor, although that was a part of it. Watanuki could feel eyes watching him. And they weren't human eyes. They were something else. He shivered slightly.

"Are you cold?" A small voice asked somewhere near his middle.

Watanuki jumped. There standing at the arm of his chair, where there had been no one, was a small girl. She had curly blonde hair which had been pulled back into two pigtails, and wore a frilly dress, like something that Maru and Moro might wear. "Wh-what?"

She giggled. "Are you cold?" She repeated. "You were shivering."

At that moment, Count D appeared carrying a tea tray which held an elegant styled porcelain pot, two cups, and two slices of what appeared to be strawberry short cake. "Pon-chan are you disturbing our guest?" He asked her.

"Uh, no, she wasn't, I was just surprised to see her."

Pon giggled again, and ran around the table to the Count's side.

The Count appeared to be taken aback by his reply. "You can see her then?" He asked.

"Um, yeah. Is there a reason why I shouldn't?"

Count D gave him another unnerving smile. "Of course not." He set down the tea tray, and was about to start pouring when Pon tugged on his robe. "Yes?" He leaned down and she whispered something in his ear. "I see. Tell Tetsu that I'm with a customer, and that I'll deal with it once our guest leaves."

She nodded, and ran off into the depths of the shop.

"Is she yours?" Watanuki asked.

Count D looked at him, his mismatched purple and gold eyes going wide. "Mine? You mean as in my daughter?" He sounded incredulous at the thought.

"Uh, well yeah."

The Count laughed, but it seemed as though he was a bit annoyed. He began to serve the tea. "Certainly not, at least not in the way you think of family."

"I see." He accepted the offered cup, and took a sip. It was really good.

"So now, I don't believe I know your name."

"Oh I'm Kimihiro Watanuki."

"I see. Does that mean that your birthday is also April 1st?"

"Yeah. My parents thought it would be funny or something." Watanuki was surprised. The only person who had ever picked up on that so quickly was Yuko. More and more he felt as if he was speaking to his employer, and he didn't like it.

"So about this friend you mentioned. You said you were looking for a gift?"

"Ah yes. Well, she's very sweet and kind, really pretty, and I really want to get her something nice."

"Does she like animals?"

He nodded. "Yes."

The Count sat back in his chair. "Well usually, it is best for the customer to be here when a pet is picked out. That way, both parties are happy with the selection, and both the pet and the customer find the right match for them. I could make a few suggestions, but maybe you could bring her by later?"

"Yeah, maybe." Watanuki was starting to feel more and more uneasy. It was everything about this place. From the Count, to Pon-chan, to the tea he was drinking that just screamed at him supernatural. Then again, maybe he shouldn't be drinking the tea. There might be something in it. He set it down.

"Watanuki."

He looked up sharply as the Count spoke his name. "Yes?"

"Is there something wrong?"

"N-no! Nothing's wrong."

"You seem uneasy. Is it something I said?"

"No not at all!"

A new, male voice reached his ears. "Heh, the kid is lying Count. Can I eat him?"

Both Watanuki and the Count looked over. There lounging on one of the couches that had been empty was a young man wearing baggy white silk pants, a vest over his bare chest, and had wild red hair. It wasn't the hair, or the clothing that caught Watanuki's attention though. It was the pair of curly goat horns that poked out of his head. The young man looked at him and smiled a carnivore's smile. He had very sharp teeth. "He looks really tasty."

Watanuki now noticed other forms he hadn't before. Another young man with a long braid wearing an assortment of punk clothing, a woman with tiger pattered ears and tail, a girl with exotic clothing and a pair of huge blue and gold wings sprouting from her back, a man with a rack of antlers coming out of either side of his head, and countless others all stared at him.

Watanuki's eyes went wide.

Pon came out from behind the couch. "Count I told him, but Tetsu wouldn't listen! I'm sorry!"

The red haired man snorted. "As if I'd listen to you, runt." He fixed his eyes on Watanuki again. "So I can eat him, right?"

Watanuki was smart enough to know danger when he found it. He stood abruptly. "Thank you for the tea. Excuse me!" He bolted.

As the door to his shop shut, Count D turned his violet and gold gaze upon the animals who lay all over his couches and chairs. It landed on the red-haired goat like creature. "Tetsu! You just lost me a customer! That was extremely rude of you! I already told you, NO you cannot eat our guests!"

"But he was lying Count. Something was up with him. You know it, I know it, heck even Pon-chan knows it!"

The little girl put her hands on her hips. "Hey! Are you implying that I'm stupid?"

"He's a customer Tetsu. No matter what he was acting like, customers have been few and far between these days! You could try to be a little more polite."

Tetsu let out a 'hmph' and turned away.

The punk-clothed kid snickered.

"Shut up Ten-chan!" Tetsu told him.

Count D sighed. "There was something about him though…" He smiled. "It seems that she's here as well. Who would have thought?"

Pon looked over curiously at D. "Who's here?"

"An old friend."

"What is she like?" The small raccoon pestered him.

He looked over at her. "She's a witch."

_Footnotes: Hello! Thank you so much for reading! This was originally going to be a one-shot, but it's evolved into at least a two chapter fic! Gah, me and the plot bunnies! They just won't leave me alone. Anyway, this is a combination of two of my favorite series, xxxholic, and Petshop of Horrors. They are amazing. Clamp and Matsuri Akino have such beautiful art. Plus Count D and Yuko are just so much fun. I really think they would be friends if they ever did meet. (Either that or they would be infuriated by each other!)_

_Count D's Pet Shop: A shop of pets run by the mysterious Count D. He sells most any animal, even mystical ones._

_The animals: If you have special powers like Count D, or Watanuki you can see the animals in their 'true forms'. These are varied depending on what animal it is, and from where in the world it originated._

_Pon-chan: A raccoon. She has been one of Count D's shop throughout the series. She appears as a bright and lively little girl with blonde curls or as a raccoon (Go figure)._

_Tetsu: He is a totetsu, or a mythical Chinese demon which eats people. He once tried to eat Count D, but after being saved by him, he became a loyal follower of D. He appears in animal form as a red goat like creature. In human form he appears as a young man with wild red hair and goat horns. An all around punk who likes to threaten to eat people._

_Ten-chan-The nine-tailed demon fox of legend. Not a psycho as he is in Naruto. He dresses in punk/goth clothing, is very laid back, and can have a foul mouth. As an animal he looks like a small white fox with multiple tails._

_Other animals mentioned-These are original, but would probably show up in Count D's shop. Can you guess what they are?_

_THANK YOU FOR READING!! PLEASE REVIEW AND TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK!!_


	2. Chapter 2

Tokyo Has Enough Weird Shops As It Is

Tokyo Has Enough Weird Shops As It Is…

By: Mokona-Midoki

Chapter Two

In which Yuko meets with an old acquaintance and discusses the ethics of business

MILD SPOILER WARNING FOR PETSHOP OF HORRORS

(If you have not finished the manga, you might want to finish it first.)

_To those of you who guessed, and those of you who didn't, the animals described in the last chapter were as follows: a tiger, a blue and gold macaw, and a white-tailed deer._

"I'm telling you Yuko, this guy was weird! And I don't use that term lightly seeing who I hang out with."

Yuko Ichihara, dimensional-witch, and employer of one Kimihiro Watanuki took a long breath on the ornate silver pipe she held in one hand, and then blew it out all over his face.

He fell back, coffing and waving the smoke away. "What'd you do that for?!"

Her lazy eyes rolled over to him. "Because you're annoying me."

"What?!"

She vaguely waved her hand in the air. "You come in here at an ungodly hour telling me stories about weird people who I don't care about, and all the while you're practically yelling! Leave me alone and let me get some rest."

"Yuko its three o'clock in the afternoon."

She glared. "And that pertains to this matter, how?"

Watanuki looked down at the pink-haired Moro and the blue-haired Maru. "She was drinking all night again, wasn't she?"

They nodded enthusiastically. "All night long!" The chorused together. "She just recovered," Moro started. "From her head ache!" Maru finished.

He looked back at his employer. "I have no sympathy for you."

She rolled away from him. "You're a cruel man, Watanuki-kun."

"Cruel!"

"Ah, shut it!" He yelled.

"A weird man." Black Mokona continued.

"YOU'RE THE WEIRDEST THING HERE, YOU BLACK BLOB!!"

"Kyah! Watanuki yelled at me!" The small black creature hid itself under Yuko's hair.

"You've probably been drinking all night too, Mokona!"

"Yes he was!" Maru and Moro chorused again.

Yuko rolled back. "So, tell me about this 'weird'" She did air quotes around the word. "person. You won't be quiet until I hear you out, so let's get it over with."

He ignored the jibe she sent his way, and started his story."Well, Himawari-chan was telling me about this new shop that had opened up, so I decided to go check it out…" As he began telling the story, Yuko's dull red eyes narrowed, and she sat up straighter and straighter, until at last when he reached, "And then this red-haired guy with goat horns asked if he could eat me, so I ran." She was sitting straight up, staring down at him with new interest.

"You say, it was a petshop?"

"Yeah, but I didn't see any animals in there."

"Well, you wouldn't…" Yuko mused.

"Huh? Yuko, do you know this guy?"

Yuko suddenly stood, startling Watanuki, and almost knocking Mokona off his perch. "Watanuki, you can go home for the day." She turned to her two assistants. "Maru, Moro, I'm going out."

Watanuki got to his feet. "Wait, what? You're leaving? Don't you want me to come?" After all, he was the one who usually did the work around here.

She looked back, her long black hair falling over her shoulder. "No. I'm going alone. I want to make a personal call. Bye Watanuki!" She shut the door in his face.

--

The shop bell rang softly as once again, the door swung open. Yuko Ichihara dressed in an outfit of black and red stood in the doorway, surveying the shop. The rustling of cloth, feathers, fur, and scales caught her ears. She smiled as she saw the table which had already been set with tea and food.

"Pardon my intrusion." She said. "But I've come here to visit the owner of this shop. Might he be available?"

There was a rustle of cloth and Count D, dressed today in a robe of white and blue stepped out into the light. He smiled. "My my, look who it is. The Dimension Witch come to pay a call."

She smirked. "I go by Yuko now."

"And I go by D."

"Very well."

He offered her a chair. "Would you like to join me?"

"That's why I'm here." She told him as she sat.

As he sat down, he eyed the box she held. "And what is that?"

She held it out to him. "It's for you. A gift. My assistant made it yesterday."

As he lifted the lid, his eyes lit up at the sight of the pastries. "These look delicious! You'll have to thank Watanuki for me."

"I never said his name."

D lightly laughed. "Oh come now, Yuko. I've known you long enough to be able to pick out someone with your mark from a mile away. How long has he been working for you?"

"Is it really that obvious? Well anyway, about a year know. He's a hard worker, but always complaining. It's so hard to find good help these days."

"I fully agree."

Yuko's bag suddenly began to rustle. Both shop owners glanced over at it. "Oh right." The witch began to undo the clasp on her bag. "I brought someone for you to meet." She flipped the bag open and Mokona popped out.

"Bwah! I thought I was gonna die!"

Yuko lifted Mokona up. "Here. I thought you'd enjoy him.

Count D's eyes went wide, and he quickly took Mokona out of her hands. "Why he's positively adorable!"

"Hiya! The name's Mokona Midoki! Mokona for short!" The black ball of fur told him.

D was enchanted. He looked up at Yuko, his eye's sparkling with excitement. "Oh Yuko, please say that I can have him!"

"Of course not! He's mine, and I need him."

The count was a bit disappointed, but he quickly cheered up. "Can I borrow him then?"

Yuko laughed. "We'll see." She looked around. "By the way, where is everybody? It seems awfully quiet."

D who was still examining Mokona waved his hand. "Oh they're here. Everyone! Come out! It's tea time!"

The first to come out was Pon. The small raccoon stared up at the witch in wonder. "Are you really a witch?"

Yuko smiled mysteriously down at her. "Yes I am."

"Pon-chan, be a dear and get the lights."

She obliged, and as they came on, countless forms came into view.

"You've expanded your collection, I see. Where's Q-chan?"

D looked up. "Well, Q-chan turned out to actually be my grandfather in disguise."

"Really? Well that's a surprise. How is the rest of your family?"

He sighed, his face dropping a bit. "My 'sister' is dead. So is Father. Though his death did give birth to another child. A human one, might I add. Grandfather is raising it right now."

Yuko eyed him with a bit of sympathy. "Your family always was pretty strange."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Hey Count! What's with all these weird people?" Tetsu asked, stepping out of the shadows. "First it was the kid yesterday, now this woman today!"

D glared. "Ignore him. He's a rude child."

Yuko laughed. "I suppose he's the one who threatened to eat my assistant."

"Yes he is. Tetsu, you should apologize when he comes back here." He told the sulking demon.

"Though I do have to ask where you found a totetsu."

"Working as a chef in a Chinese restaurant in San Fransisco."

Her eyebrows rose. "There's a first time for everything I guess."

A young boy with cat ears and tail crept closer to Yuko in order to inspect her, and she reached down and offered him a sweet. He smiled, and accepted it.

With this, the others seemed to gain more confidence, and all began to move forward in order to see the stranger up close, and get their tea, which Pon had begun to pour. A young boy with red, blue, and yellow wings was bold enough to reach out and touch Yuko's dress. When she looked down at him, he blushed and flew off to perch next to a girl with blue and gold wings.

"I heard about some of what happened in San Fransisco."  
The count had set down Mokona in order to pick up his cup. "I do hope you're not blaming me for those unfortunate incidents. None of it was my fault."

"Yes, yes, I know that you give out specific instructions to your customers, but if you haven't noticed, humans can be pretty foolish sometimes."

He looked over the rim of his teacup at her, his mismatched gold and purple eyes locking with her red ones. "Yes, they can be. Perhaps you should remember that as well, Yuko. You're not exactly spotless yourself."

She sighed. "You don't have to remind me of that, D. I'm well aware of the responsibilities that come with what I do."

"As am I. It's as you said though: humans can be pretty foolish. We provide them with a way to better themselves, and it's up to them to take the chance, or ruin their lives."

"I thought you were out to destroy all humans." She asked him.

He turned away slightly so that his hair covered part of his face. "Yes well…perhaps I will."

"And perhaps you won't?"

He turned back, smiling. "Let's leave that question to posterity."

She smiled. He was different from what she remembered. The same, yet different. Something had happened that had changed him. "Agreed. By the way, the pastries really are delicious. Watanuki is an excellent cook."

"Well then, by all means, we must try them."

He began to dish out the crème covered pastries. Yuko accepted one and passed it on to a woman with red hair, and black rings around her eyes.

"So, besides the usual, has anything intresting happened to you lately?" She asked him.

"Well, a few days ago I did meet the Holy King of Dhalashar. He was quite an interesting boy."

"The Holy King?"

"Yes, Lord Sohki brought him. Along with Garuda, Lord Hanuman, and General Genro."

Yuko smiled. "Fascinating. I do believe that I want to meet him."

"He'd probably get along splendidly with your apprentice. They seem to have the same approach to the supernatural."

Yuko laughed. "Yes, Watanuki is rather jumpy isn't he?"

"Indeed." He paused, then looked back at Yuko. "There is one more thing…"

"Oh?"

"Are you sure I can't keep Mokona?"

"Quite sure."

"Oh well. It was worth a try. If I remember correctly, he is supposed to have a twin, right? Where might that one be?"

"Well, it's a very good story if you have time."

"Please, do tell."

The two shop owners of the most shady, and illegal, shops in Tokyo talked for a long time. By the time Yuko finally left, it was already evening.

"Are you sure you don't want somebody to accompany you?" Count D asked her.

"I'll be fine. I am a witch after all."

"Do come back soon, Yuko. I do enjoy your company."

"Of course."

"And bring Watanuki with you. Tetsu will be on his best behavior, so you don't have to worry."

Yuko grinned. "I'll see when he has the time."

"Good night then."

"I'll see you later." She turned and left. Behind her she heard the bell as the door shut. Yes. Today had been a most interesting day indeed.

The End

_Please review and tell me if you would like a continuation. I'm considering the idea._

_This is the revised chapter. To DuosAngel and Musa Rox who reviewed and asked about the confusio before, I read most of the middle part of the story online. The scans sometimes always don't convey the clearest meaning. Sorry for the confusion, and thanks for reviewing!_

_Footnotes: Wow! My first EVER fic to get finished! Spare me a moment to shed tears of joy! Anyway, please tell me what you think. I really wanted to capture Yuko and Count D's personalities, and I hope I did so._

_Count D's family-Our poor Count has quite the dysfunctional family. His 'sister' appears in the manga only to try and kill him. She is killed instead. His Father also dies, in the last volume of Petshop of Horrors (Number 10). His grandfather, the original Count D, is now MIA with our Count's newest 'sibling'._

_The Holy King of Dhalashar-This is a reference to Matsuri Akino's (The creator of Petshop of Horrors) other work, Genju no Seiza. The main character Fuuto discovers he's actually the reincarnated king of a tiny mystical kingdom called Dhalashar. Chaos ensues. (An excellent read by the way. I fully recommend it.)_

_Sohki, Garuda, Hanuman, and Genro-Another reference to Genju no Seiza. These four are the god-like guardians of Fuuto. Sohki is a kirin, Garuda a bird of legend, Hanuman a monkey-god, and Genro is a wolf-god._

_Various animals: The cat-boy was just a regular house cat. The red winged boy is a scarlet macaw, and the blue winged girl is a blue and gold macaw. The red-haired woman is a red panda._


End file.
